Stories of DRC Data in Action

Below are stories of how individual Data Resource Center (DRC) users have utilized the data for advocacy, policy work, and education. Share your story and let us know how you’ve been able to enact change with this data!

Using Data from the DRC to Teach Graduate  Students & Jumpstart MCH Careers
Russell Kirby, Professor and Merrell Endowed Chair at the University of South Florida College of Public Health, has used the Data Resource Center for Child and Adolescent Health to teach his second year master’s and doctoral students since 2009. In his Secondary Data Analysis for Maternal and Child Health class, Dr. Kirby works with his students through the research and analysis process focusing on a topic of their choice from the National Survey of Children's Health. The class culminates in a presentation and manuscript, which some students take to national conferences.

Massachusetts Mom Storms the State House
Carrie Howland a mother and family leader included data from the Data Resource Center in a presentation at the National Respite Coalition event in Washington DC, in support of the National Lifespan Respite Care Act. Read more here on Carrie's family, work, and download a copy of her presentation to the Massachusetts legislature in 2006, as well as her most recent testimony to Congress.

Family Voices Leader in North Dakota
Donene Feist, a parent activist, understands the power of data to support and strengthen the stories parents and caregivers have to tell about the challenges of caring for children with special needs. Read more here on Donene's work and download a copy of her presentation titled "Leaving No Child Behind".

Minnesota’s Title V Supervisor uses the DRC to develop Needs Assessment Fact Sheets
Sarah Thorson, Supervisor of Minnesota’s Title V uses data from the DRC to develop fact sheets for the 5 year needs assessment required by the national Title V Maternal and Child Health Program. Read more here on Sarah's work and download a copy of her Needs Assessment Fact Sheets.

Save the CDRC
Dr. Brian Rogers used state-by-state comparisons from the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs in his preparation for a legislative hearing on proposed budget cuts to the Child Development and Rehabilitation Center (CDRC).

Adolescent Health Care Access
Margaret McManus and Harriette Fox of Incenter Strategies share their experiences with technical assistance at the DRC. Margaret and Harriette wrote a report brief based on data from the National Health Interview Survey and the National Survey of Children's Health, this fact sheet examines the relationship of race and ethnicity for a set of 12 indicators.